Harness-buckle



PATENTED JAN. 5, 1904.

A. w. a: T. H. NANCE.

HARNESS BUCKLE.

' APPLICATION FILED 0015.27, 1902.

H0 MODEL.

UNITED STATES Patented January 5, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

ALBERT W. NAN OE AND THADDEUS H. NANCE, OF DAVIS MILLS, VIRGINIA.

HARNESS-BUCKLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 748,776, dated January 5, 1904.

Application filed October 27, 1902 Serial l lo. 129,029. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we,ALBERT W.NANCE and THADDEUS H. NANCE, citizens of the United States, residing at Davis Mills, in the county of Bedford and State of Virginia, have inven ted a new and useful Harness-Buckle, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to harness-buckles, and is designed to provide an improved buckle especially adapted for connecting the crossed portions of a back-pad strap and a trace, so that the latter may be supported at. any elevation upon the former and the back pad strap may be adjusted lengthwise of the trace, so as to be accommodated to animals of different sizes and also to permit shifting of the back-pad in the event of an animal having a sore back. It is furthermore designed to arrange for conveniently fitting the strap to and removing the same from the buckle and also to provide for positively connecting the crossed straps, so as to obviate creeping.

of the back-pad strap upon the trace by the movements of the animal, and, finally, to arrange for connecting the buckle to the trace in such a manner as to obviate perforating that portion of the trace upon which the greatest strain is applied.

With these and other objects in view the present invention consists in the combination and arrangement of parts, as will be hereinafter more fully described, shown in the accompanying drawings, and particularly pointed out in the appended claims, it being.

understood that changes in the form, proportion, size, and minor details may be made within the scope of the claims without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a portion of a back-pad strap crossing a trace and'secured thereto by means of the present form of buckle. Fig. 2 is across-sec-v tional view thereof on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view of a buckle constructed and arranged in accordance with the present invention. Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectional View thereof.

Like characters of reference designate corresponding parts in all the figures of the drawings.

Referring at first more particularly to Figs.

responding sides of the front frame.

3 and 4 of the drawings, it will be seen that the present buckle has a front substantially U-shaped frame 1, one end of which is open and the other end is provided with a rearwardly-extended loop 2 for engagement by a holdback-strap. At the four corners of the front frame are rearwardly-extended posts 3,

and between the corresponding front and rear posts extend rear frame bars or members 4, which form guides and which are fiat and have their inner longitudinal edges projected inwardly beyond the inner edges of the cor- The posts 3 and the rear bars 4 provide a depressed center and form opposite longitudinal ways, and the spaces between the posts at opposite sides of the buckle form a transverse .way. At the middle of each bar or member 4 is a stud 5, which projects forwardly and is disposed adjacent to the inner edge of the bar, so as to lie in front of and spaced from the inner edge of the adjacent side of the front member.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, it will be seen that the present buckle is particularly designed for use with a trace 6, which is reinforced on opposite sides and throughout its longitudinal center by means of the leather straps 7 and 8 in the common orordinary manner. The trace is applied longitudinally to the buckle with the inner reinforcing-strap 7 received in the seat or longitudinal space between the members 4: of the rear frame portion of the buckle, with the studs 5 passing through corresponding perforations 9 in the edge portions of the center ply of the trace. The back-pad strap 10 passes across the front of the trace through the loops at the top and bottom of the buckle formed by the corresponding front and rear frame members,with the ends of the studs received within the usual perforations of the strap. By this combination and arrangement of parts it will be seen that both the trace and the back-pad strap are connected to the buckle, and. therefore the latter forms a positive connection between the trace and the strap at the point of crossing thereof. Furthermore, the buckle may be adjusted longitudinally upon the trace, so as to shift the back-pad strap to the front or rear, as may be desired, and the buckle may also be raised and lowered upon the back-pad strap for the purpose of supporting the trace at any desired elevation.

A very important feature of the buckle resides in the disposition of the studs so as to pass through the edge portions of the com paratively wide center ply of the trace instead of passing through the reinforced portion thereof, whereby it is not necessary to perforate that portion of the trace to which the greatest strain is applied, and as there is no strain upon the buckle there is no liability of the edges of the center ply becoming torn or damaged by the studs.

The front end of the main frame of the buckle is omitted, so as to facilitate the engagement of the trace with the buckle, and the members of the rear frame are separated by a longitudinal interspace to form a seat for the reception of the inner reinforcingstrap 7, whereby the intermediate ply of the trace may lie flat against the rear frame of the buckle, and thereby give room for the back-strap without increasing the thickness of the buckle. It will here be observed that the outer ends of the studs are substantially flush with the front face of the buckle, and the latter is free from projection at its rear as well as its front side.

What is claimed is- 1. The combination with a trace having a central reinforcing-piece, and a back-pad strap, of a buckle provided with transverse and longitudinal ways, the former receiving the back pad strap, and the latter being spaced apart to receive the reinforcing-piece of the trace, said trace being extended beyond the sides of the reinforcing-piece and engaging the longitudinal ways, and means for engaging the trace and the back-pad strap, substantially as described.

2. A buckle provided with a longitudinal slot to receive the reinforcing-piece of a trace, and having longitudinal ways at opposite sides of the slot for the projecting side portions of the trace, said buckle being also provided with a transverse way for a back-pad strap, and studs located in the longitudinal ways for engaging the back-pad strap and the side portions of the trace, substantially as described.

3. The combination with a trace having a reinforcing-strip, and a back-pad strap, of a buckle provided with longitudinal and transverse ways, the longitudinal ways being spaced apart to receive and guide the reinforcing-piece of the trace, and the latter being extended beyond the sides of the reinforcing-strip to engage the longitudinal ways, the back-pad strap being arranged in the transverse Ways, and studs located in the longitudinal ways of the buckle and engaging the strap and the side portions of the trace, substantially as described.

4. The combination with a trace provided with the reinforcing-piece, and a back-pad strap, of a buckle having a depressed center and provided therein with a slot receiving and guiding the reinforcing-piece of the trace and forming opposite longitudinal ways, the trace being extended laterally beyond the reinforcing-piece and engaging the longitudinal ways, said buckle being provided at opposite sides of the slot with openings to receive the strap, and means for engaging the trace and the strap, substantially as described.

5. Abuckle comprising an open front frame, a rear frame carried by and spaced from the front frame, the space between the two frames forming a longitudinal strapreceiving way, the opposite sides of the rear frame being provided with strap-receiving openings or loops disposed transversely of the way, and studs projecting forwardly from the back of the buckle into the opening of the front frame and disposed within and adjacent to the opposite longitudinal sides of the strap-receiving way.

6. Abuckle comprising an open front frame, posts projecting rearwardly from the frame, bars carried by the posts and separated by a longitudinal interspace to receive and guide the reinforcing-piece of a trace, said bars having their inner longitudinal edges projected inwardly beyond the inner edges of the corresponding sides of the front frame and arranged to be engaged to the projecting side portions of a trace, and studs projected forwardly from the bars and disposed at the inner edges of the opposite sides of the front frame.

7. A buckle comprising a substantially rectangularfront frame having its front end omitted, posts projected rearwardly from the corners of the frame, upper and lower framebars carried by the posts with their inner edges projected inwardly beyond the inner edges of the corresponding sides of the front frame and spaced apart to receive the reinforcing-piece of a trace and adapted to be engaged by the projecting side portions thereof, and studs carried by and disposed substantially midway of the bars and spaced inwardly from the inner edges of said corresponding sides of the front frame.

8. A buckle comprising an open approximately U-shaped frame, a depressed bottom composed of longitudinal guides spaced apart to receive the reinforcing-piece of a trace and adapted to be engaged by the projecting side portions thereof and provided with openings forming a transverse way, and a stud mounted on the depressed bottom, substantially as described.

9. Abuckle comprising an open front frame provided at one end with a loop to receive a holdback-strap, longitudinal and transverse ways located below the front frame and arranged to receive a trace and a back-pad strap, the longitudinal way being provided throughout its entire length with an opening to receive the reinforcing-piece of a trace and the latter longitudinal Ways, and means for engaging the strap and the trace, substantially as described.

In testimony that we claim the foregoing as I 5 being projected beyond the reinforcing-piece to engage the longitudinal way, substantially as described.

10. The combination with a trace having a reinforcing-piece, and a back-pad strap, of a our own we have hereto aflixed our signabuckle comprising an open frame, and a detures in the presence of two witnesses.

pressed center provided with opposite openings for the strap and having a longitudinal slot to receive and guide the reinforcing-piece of the trace, the latter being extended beyond the reinforcing-piece for engaging the ALBERT W. NANCE. THADDEUS H. NANCE. Witnesses:

J. ELLIS HALL, J12, T. M. BOLLING. 

